ALEXANDRIA, VA.—The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) announced that the NBTA Modular Hotel RFP has been updated for the 2009 bid season. The changes include the addition of six questions to help travel buyers and hotels reach common understanding of the hotels’ environmental programs, as well as changes to the pricing grid to support dynamic pricing requests. The Modular Hotel RFP, the industry-standard hotel RFP model, is managed by the NBTA Hotel Committee. The committee, which is made up of buyers, hoteliers, third-party RFP service providers, and related vendors, gathered feedback from the corporate travel community through a survey...

ATLANTA—ASHRAE has launched a new magazine to help decision-makers in the building community learn about the latest developments in innovative technologies and energy-efficient design and operation. Targeted at building owners, facility managers, architects and engineers, High Performing Buildings features working case studies of exemplary buildings developed by leading practitioners in the sustainability movement. Also included is a “lessons learned” section in each article where building designers and operators explain what went right, what went wrong, how problems were resolved and what could have been done better. “It is essential that ASHRAE share both the technologies and measured performance of high-performance buildings...

ORLANDO, FLA.—Going green is the right thing to do, and few understand that better than The Florida Hotel and Conference Center, which will soon receive Green Lodging certification from the State of Florida for its conservation practices. The luxurious Florida Hotel and Conference Center, which is connected to Orlando tourist attraction the Florida Mall, has significantly reduced its water and energy usage since it began working on its Green Lodging Certificate earlier this year. “Going green is a sweeping trend within the meetings industry and it is simply the right thing to do,” stated Simone Kuska, corporate director of sales...

NATIONAL REPORT—Visitors to the Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa won’t find the usual Gideon Bible in the nightstand drawer. Instead, on the bureau will be a copy of An Inconvenient Truth, former Vice President Al Gore’s book on global warming. Guests will also find the Gaia equipped with waterless urinals, solar lighting, recycled paper and other green features. Similar features are found just 35 miles south at San Francisco’s Orchard Garden Hotel, which competes for customers with neighboring luxury hotels like the Ritz-Carlton and the Fairmont. The Gaia and the Orchard Garden Hotel are among a growing number of...

TORONTO—As part of Fairmont’s Hotels & Resorts’ new commitment to organic, sustainable and local menus, measures are taken everyday at Fairmont hotels across the globe to also find creative ways to run an environmentally responsible kitchen. Going beyond simply purchasing sustainable food items, these efforts include recycling, and reusing and donating—all resulting in an overall impact that lessens the luxury brand’s footprint on the planet. Fairmont properties have long had partnerships in place that provide them with the freshest local ingredients, and many of these purveyors are as committed to sustainability as Fairmont. For example, Fairmont locations in the Pacific...

TAMPA, FLA.—Tampa-based BayStar Hotel Group is implementing environmentally friendly standards and practices in its hotels to earn Green Lodging certification from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). All of the properties managed by BayStar Hotel Group are involved. The hotels include: Holiday Inn-State Capitol East in Tallahassee; Holiday Inn Express-Lake Buena Vista; Hampton Inn & Suites in downtown Largo; Holiday Inn Lakeland I-4 Hotel & Conference Center in Lakeland; and Best Western Brandon Hotel & Conference Center. To qualify for Green Lodging certification, hotels must document efforts to reduce energy and water consumption, improve air quality and pass a...

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Rhode Island will soon have its own green lodging certification program. The program is being put together by the state’s Department of Environmental Management (DEM), the Rhode Island Hospitality and Tourism Assn., Providence Warwick Convention and Visitors Bureau, and several other organizations. According to Ron Gagnon, chief of the Office of Technical and Customer Assistance, Department of Environmental Management, January is the target month for the program’s launch and it will be run by his office. The certification program will mirror Maine’s Green Lodging Certification Program. Participants will be asked to complete surveys that ask them about efforts being...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Emma Duncan, deputy editor of The Economist and an expert on the evolving economic state of going green, will share her global insight and environmentally-friendly development strategies at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS), January 28–30, 2008. In her keynote address, “Business & Climate Change,” Duncan will advise an audience of hotel executives, investors, developers, and professional financial advisors of the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change and how their businesses can help solve this intractable problem. ALIS, the lodging industry’s annual premier investment conference addressing the unique needs of the hotel investment community, has made eco-friendly business...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—A newly incorporated entity, the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), has been established with the support of the U.S. Green Building Council to develop and administer credentialing programs related to green building practice and standards. “Credentialing programs support the application of proven strategies for increasing and measuring the performance of buildings and communities as defined by industry systems such as the LEED Green Building Rating Systems,” said Peter Templeton, Vice President of Education & Research, U.S. Green Building Council. GBCI will ensure that the LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP) program will continue to be developed in accordance with best practices...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Willard InterContinental, under the leadership of general manager Hervé Houdré, was awarded the IH&RA Environmental Award for Hospitality Sustainable Development for “Willard InterContinental—The Next 100 Years.” The holistic plan is comprised of interwoven sustainable projects designed for a luxurious urban hospitality experience in harmony with social and ecological consciousness and economic viability. The myriad programs that comprise the sustainability program include the conversion to 100 percent wind energy power—making the Willard the first hotel in the nation’s capital and one of the first urban luxury hotels in the United States to achieve this. Other projects include a complete...